The unsung heroes of cinema and television, extras play a crucial role in creating atmosphere.
Imagine Central Perk being completely empty every time the Friends cast entered.
Being an extra on a movie set may sound like a dream job, but it’s harder than we think, says one from the Home and Away series.
Home and Away extra Sophie revealed that she got paid about $35 per hour for a 10 hour day while calling into Fitzy & Wippa on Nova radio. Although it is more than Australia’s minimum salary of $21.38 per hour, your comfort is sacrificed.
I’m going to spend roughly 10 hours in a bikini in Palm Beach in the dead of winter. You laugh now, but you’ve already done it. The radio hosts heard from Sophie.
The cast of Home and Away must act as though it’s summer even in the midst of winter because the show shoots all year long and Summer Bay doesn’t follow the traditional seasons.
Wippa didn’t appear overly concerned, however, telling the audience, “$350 for bikinis, I’d do it for sure.”
The Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) award agreements govern how most extras are compensated. Extras can anticipate earning at least $30.86 per hour for a minimum of four hours of labour in Australian television programmes.
Extras can anticipate being paid $32.89 per hour for both Australian and international productions that are filming in Australia, again for a minimum of four hours of work.
Where you film can also affect how much you get paid. A source claims that Sydney extras can make a little bit more money than their Melbourne counterparts. Maybe it explains why Sophie was making over $5 more than the minimum wage.
A brief search on Seek.com reveals that casting directors are constantly looking for fresh extras. So this is your chance to make some extra cash if you don’t mind hanging out in a bikini in August.
